This summer marks 10 years since Austria last qualified for a major tournament - and the cynics will be quick to point out they haven't actually qualified for this one, securing their place by winning the bidding to co-host it.

This will also be their first-ever appearance in a European Championship having failed to qualify on each of their previous attempts.

That is the clearest things aren't what they were in Austrian football, particularly set against the background of their 'Wunderteam' of the 1930s.

Their fourth-placed finish in the World Cup in 1934 was only bettered 20 years later when the national side won the third/fourth place play-off after losing to Germany in the semi-finals, but sadly players of the quality of Hans Krankl and Toni Polster have been in the minority as their fortunes have taken a dive.

By far the lowest-ranked team to compete in this summer's tournament, Austria slipped out of the top 100 in the FIFA rankings after a run of just one win in 14 matches to the start of this year.

Manager - Josef Hickersberger

In his second spell in charge of the national side, Hickersberger is one of an elite band to have appeared at a World Cup both as a player and a coach.

He did the former in 1978, winning the last of his 39 caps during the tournament, and the latter in 1990 during his first spell in control.

After a playing career which took in Austria Vienna, Offenbacher Kickers, Fortuna Dusseldorf, SSW Innsbruck and Rapid Vienna, he started coaching with the Austrian Under-21 side before promotion to the senior set-up.

And though his tenure would include securing qualification for the 1990 World Cup, he left the post when Austria infamously lost 1-0 to minnows the Faroe Islands in the first match of their Euro 92 qualifying campaign.

Fortuna gave him a return to the domestic game but he was attracted by the lure of foreign fields and had spells with Al Ahli, Al Ittihad, Arab Contractors, Al Shabab and Al Wasl and picked up more international experience in Bahrain.

Returning to his homeland with Rapid in 2002, he would win the Austrian title before returning to his post as national boss.

But it has been tough for Hickersberger second time round as he has struggled to find the right blend and has had little to cheer.

Star man - Martin Harnik

A precocious talent who looks destined for big things, Harnik is the main reason those who follow Austrian football closely have a positive outlook for the future of the national side.

Times may be hard at present but with Harnik already a German Bundesliga regular at the age of 20 (he turns 21 during the tournament), things are looking up as Austria look to the months and years to come.

Born in Germany but with a father from Graz, the pacy striker broke into Werder Bremen's first team last year and was quickly rewared with a pro deal.

A goalscoring international debut as a substitute against the Czech Republic in August 2007 gave a mouthwatering glimpse of the future and he will hope to build on that this summer on the biggest stage he has appeared on.

British interest

Just the one player currently based in Britain has made the squad, but three other players have previous experience of English football.

Emanuel Pogatetz is the sole Premier League representative, though 'Mad Dog' is hardly the apple of coach Josef Hickersberger's eye after criticising him following poor result against Costa Rica and Venezuela in late 2006.

The Middlesbrough man is joined in the squad by former Premier League goalkeepers Alex Manninger and Jurgen Macho - plus defender Martin Hiden.

Manninger, Austria's most likely No 1, spent his four years in England largely as back-up at Arsenal, though he did keep six straight clean sheets in their 1998 Double, and is now back in Serie A with Siena.

Like Manninger, squad-mate Macho's spell in England was filled with bench-warming as he served as Thomas Sorensen's understudy at Sunderland for three years then - bizarrely - had 12 months as fourth choice at Chelsea.

Hiden was the first Austrian outfield player to play in the Premier League when joining Leeds in the summer of 1998 but just 30 appearances later he returned to his homeland with Rapid Vienna.

Why they'll win

Hard to make a case when one of the great Austrian legends urges fans to be "realistic" and says getting past the group stage would be a "great, great success". But international footballers are a proud bunch and they will be determined to prove Hans Krankl - and just about every football tipster around the world - wrong. History is littered with examples of host teams getting caught up in the occasion and exceeding expectations and Austria will need that to be the case here. As their coach says: "The team need to provide a spark for the fans and vice versa...and then you never know."

Why they won't win

Where to start? By far the lowest-ranked team in the competition (and even behind UAE, Syria, Gabon and Algeria), playing in their first European Championship and first major tournament for 10 years, just off the back of a run of one win in 14 games, their coach has become a 'Tinkerman' to rival Claudio Ranieri and Rafa Benitez as he has sought the right blend and he admits even getting to the quarter-finals would be a "world sensation". Oh, and they're in a group with two of the top 13 teams in the world.